TL;DR: An EAR is a paid review of your exam marking, submitted through your school (or a local representative for private candidates) within roughly 4–6 weeks of results day. Fees vary by country and service type, but are refunded if your grade changes. No official Cambridge or Edexcel success-rate data is published, though UK GCSE data suggests roughly one in five challenged grades change — almost always upward.
Typical Window 4–6 weeks after results
Processing Time ~30 days
Fee Refund Only if grade changes
Grade Change Odds ≈ 1 in 4 (UK GCSE proxy)

An EAR Is a Formal Review, Not a Full Re-Mark From Scratch

An Enquiry About Results is a review of the marking on your exam script, or a re-moderation of coursework. Cambridge runs extensive quality checks before releasing results, but EAR exists for cases where a student or school still wants an independent second look.

Cambridge offers a few distinct EAR services:

Service What It Checks
Service 1 — Clerical re-check Confirms all parts of the script were marked, marks were totalled and recorded correctly
Service 1S — Clerical re-check + copy of script Same as Service 1, plus you receive a copy of the reviewed script
Service 2 — Review of marking + clerical re-check A second examiner re-marks the paper, on top of the clerical checks
Service 2S — Review of marking + clerical re-check + copy of script Full re-mark, with a copy of the script included
Access to Scripts A copy of your marked paper (no examiner annotation) to help decide whether an EAR is worth pursuing — often free or low-cost

You can only select one review type per component, and you can't submit a second request for the same syllabus once one has already been made.

Deadlines Are Tight and Vary by Exam Series

Deadlines are set by Cambridge for each series and are administered through your centre. Typical published deadlines are:

Exam Series Typical Published Deadline
June series 20 September
November series 26 February
Watch the internal cut-off. Your school or British Council will almost always set an earlier internal deadline than the board's published date. Late submissions are not accepted — confirm the exact local date with your exams officer rather than assuming a fixed window.

Because deadlines are set locally and vary by country and series, always confirm the exact date with your school or exam centre. Processing itself typically takes within 30 days from when payment is confirmed, with the outcome sent by email. If you're still deciding between sittings, our guide to the May/June vs Oct/Nov exam series is worth a read first.

Fees Are Charged Per Component and Refunded If Your Grade Improves

EAR fees are charged per component, not per subject, and vary significantly by country. Cambridge invoices the centre directly; the centre (or British Council for private candidates) then charges the candidate, usually in local currency. Fees therefore vary by country and are not published as a single global list by Cambridge.

As a general rule:

Cambridge does not charge the fee if the enquiry results in a change to your syllabus grade — so if the review succeeds, you get your money back.

Three Outcomes Are Possible — And a Lower Grade Is Rare but Real

Every EAR ends in one of three outcomes:

Downward changes are uncommon but genuinely possible, since a full review examines the whole script, not just the parts you're hoping will earn more marks. Most schools ask students to sign a form acknowledging this risk before submitting a Service 2 request.

No Official Success Rate Exists for IGCSE — But Domestic GCSE Data Offers a Rough Guide

Cambridge and Edexcel don't publish aggregate EAR success-rate statistics for IGCSE the way England's exam regulator, Ofqual, does for domestic UK GCSEs. That means there's no official "X% of IGCSE EARs succeed" figure to point to.

For a rough sense of scale, Ofqual's most recent domestic GCSE data (summer 2025) showed that about 24% of challenged grades changed after a full review, with almost all changes moving upward and under 0.1% moving down. This is UK GCSE data, not Cambridge or Edexcel International data, and the two qualifications are marked by different boards — so treat it only as a general indicator, not a direct prediction for your IGCSE result.

What generally affects your odds, based on how marking review services work:

Quick sanity check before you pay

If you were two marks below the A boundary but ten marks clear of the B, an EAR has something to aim at. If you were twelve marks below the A and one mark above the B, the realistic ceiling is a confirmed grade — and you'd be paying for the privilege of finding out.

How to Apply for an EAR

  1. Check your marks against recent grade boundaries first. If you're comfortably clear of the next boundary, an EAR is unlikely to change your grade even if some marks shift.
  2. Request Access to Scripts, if available, to see your marked paper before deciding whether a full review is worth the fee.
  3. Submit through your school if you're a school candidate — private candidates typically apply through their regional exam representative.
  4. Choose your service type carefully — you can only select one review type per component per subject.
  5. Pay the fee and wait out the processing window, generally around five weeks, watching for the deadline for your specific exam series.

Before deciding whether to spend on an EAR, it's worth confirming exactly how close you were to the next boundary. The IGCSE Grade Calculator lets you check recent grade boundary trends by subject, so you can see whether your mark was borderline enough to justify the cost. You can also browse IGCSE grade boundary trends and our thresholds reference for historical context.

Note: The detailed service names and table above are for Cambridge International. Pearson Edexcel (International GCSE) offers similar post-results services (clerical check and review of marking), but the exact service codes, priority options, fees and turnaround times differ. Always check the specific board's guidance. See our CAIE vs Edexcel comparison for how the two boards differ.

Were you actually borderline?

Enter your raw marks per component and see how close you sat to the next grade boundary — free, no sign-up.

Open the IGCSE Grade Calculator →

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does an IGCSE EAR take to process?

Typically within about 30 days from when your payment is confirmed, with the exam board emailing the outcome once complete. In practice, many students wait roughly five weeks end to end.

Can my IGCSE grade go down after an EAR?

Yes — a full Review of Marking checks the whole script, so marks can be lowered as well as raised, though this is uncommon. Under 0.1% of challenged UK GCSE grades moved down in the most recent published data.

Do I get my money back if the EAR doesn't change my grade?

No — the fee is only refunded if the enquiry results in an actual grade change; if your original grade is confirmed, the fee is kept.

Is there an official IGCSE EAR success rate?

No — Cambridge and Edexcel don't publish aggregate EAR statistics for IGCSE. UK domestic GCSE data (a different qualification) shows roughly a 1-in-4 chance of a grade change, mostly upward, which can serve only as a rough general reference.

Which EAR service should I choose?

A clerical re-check is cheaper and confirms your marks were added and recorded correctly; a full Review of Marking costs more but is the only service where a second examiner actually re-marks your answers.

This guide reflects publicly available Cambridge International and Pearson Edexcel post-results information and personal assessment as of September 2026. Deadlines, fees, service codes and turnaround times change by exam series and by country — always confirm current details with your school, exam centre or the relevant board before submitting an enquiry. The Ofqual figure cited relates to UK domestic GCSEs, not IGCSE, and is included only as a general reference.

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About the Developer

I am Chew, an education technology developer and academic consultant with 5+ years building educational websites. I developed the IGCSE Grade Calculator to bridge the gap between complex official PDF thresholds and student accessibility.

The mathematical models used in this calculator are verified against the Cambridge Assessment International Education (CAIE) guidelines for component weighting. This ensures that the "Total Weighted Mark" produced here matches the logic used by official examiners.